Learn more about the stages of COPD, including diagnosis, treatments, medication and self-care suggestions.

You thought that climbing the stairs or throwing a ball with the kids was getting harder because of age. Now you know otherwise. The doctor says you have symptoms of COPD, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The disorder refers to a group of lung diseases that affect your ability to breathe. (The two primary conditions are emphysema and chronic bronchitis.) COPD is an incurable, chronic disease that slowly kills healthy lung tissue.

It’s diagnosed by a lung function test, a spirometry, which measures the amount of air you can breathe in and blow out, as well as how your lungs respond to medicines designed to open airways and allow more effective airflow. Most people diagnosed with COPD show lung function of just half of what it should be given their age, height and sex, Ohar says.

But by knowing what to expect and following your doctor’s COPD treatment plan, you can prevent the disease from getting worse and get back to a normal life.

Not quitting, or being around secondhand smoke, is the primary reason your symptoms of COPD aren’t going away, he says. Common signs include coughing, wheezing and coughing up clear mucus. The severity of symptoms of COPD depends on your lung capacity and the disease’s stage at diagnosis.

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